Without You Alternate Ending
by November Rain 19
Summary: Title kind of says it all. One Tai/Sora ending, as promised.


Author's Notes: Well, here's the alternate ending just like I promised. 

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon or any of the songs I used in this fic. I merely borrowed them for a little while. Don't worry, I'll return them in the same condition. 

Dedication: To anyone who's been torn about what ending to write for a story.   
  
  


Without You (Tai/Sora ending)   
By Melissa 

  
  


Sora was in her room, sitting at her computer. She occasionally glanced away from screen and at the pictures that were on her desk. In one was a shot of her in her graduation gown. Sora had graduated from high school almost two months ago. The next picture was of her and Matt at their senior prom, which had been about a three months ago. She smiled and ran her fingers over the glass of the picture. At the prom, Matt had admitted that he had been and was in love with her. She had discovered that she had deep feelings for Matt as well. It was truly exciting to be in love with her best friend. 

Sora's smile vanished after a moment. In her mind, she thought that she should have been the happiest girl on the face of the earth. The summer was almost over, she was preparing to go away to college and she had a boy who loved her with all of his heart. 

She wasn't happy though. As near as she could figure out, lately she had been preoccupied with thoughts of her ex-boyfriend Tai Kamiya. Sora was not sure of the reason. 

As she composed some email, she clicked on her radio. A song by Vonda Shepard was on. It was a duet with one of the members of The Indigo Girls.   


_I like the way you wanted me_   
_Every night for so long baby_   
_I like the way you needed me_   
_Every time things got rocky_

_I was believing in you_   
_Was I mistaken_   
_Do you say, do you say what you mean?_   
_I want our love to last forever_

_But I'd rather you be mean than love and lie_   
_I'd rather hear the truth and have to say goodbye_   
_I'd rather take a blow at least then I would know_   
_But baby don't you break my heart slow_

_I like the way you'd hold me_   
_Every night for so long baby_   
_And I like the way you'd say my name_   
_In the middle of the night_   
_While you were sleeping_

_I was believing in you_   
_Was I mistaken_   
_Do you mean, do you mean what you say?_   
_When you say our love could last forever_

_But I'd rather you be mean than love and lie_   
_I'd rather hear the truth and have to say goodbye_   
_I'd rather take a blow at least then I would know_   
_But baby don't you break my heart slow_

_You would run around and lead me on forever_   
_While I wait at home still thinking that we're together_   
_I wanted our love to last forever_

_I was believing in you_

_I'd rather you be mean than love and lie_   
_I'd rather hear the truth and have to say goodbye_   
_I'd rather take a blow at least then I would know_   
_But baby don't you break my heart slow_

_I'd rather you be mean than love and lie_   
_I'd rather hear the truth and have to say goodbye_   
_I'd rather take a blow at least then I would know_   
_But baby don't you break my heart slow_

_Baby don't you break my heart slow_

Sora had stopped typing as she listened to the song. A brief look of sadness flashed across her features. Each word stirred up memories of the four years she had been with the child of courage. The song reminded her of all the time she had spent trying to love Tai, when she was convinced that there was no way that he loved her back. He had spent four long years slowly breaking her heart. 

When the song was over, Sora turned off the radio. She shook her head for a moment, trying to get Tai out of her mind. That was easier said then done, though. Old feelings die hard. 

'I have Matt now. He loves me more than I ever thought was possible. He's the one I belong with,' she thought to herself. 

'Oh yeah?' A voice somewhere deep inside her answered. 'If that's so, then why are you thinking of Tai? Can you really care that much for another after loving Tai so deeply?' 

Sora looked helplessly at herself in the mirror at her desk. "I just don't know....." she whispered, her voice echoing in the silence of her room.   
  


A few blocks away, Tai was sitting in his room, absentmindedly throwing a soccer ball against the wall. He had been very preoccupied as of late, but he was unsure why. 

'That's a lie,' a voice inside him said. 'You know exactly why.' 

He had been thinking of Sora. It had been about eight months since he had ended it with her. For awhile he thought he had moved on, but for the past several months he just couldn't seem to think of anything else. 

"What's wrong with me?" he mumbled to himself. "I'm the one who ended it, the one who wanted to get out. Why aren't I happy?" 

Little pangs of guilt had done nothing but grow since the day he had broken up with Sora. For the most part he was able to ignore them, or occupy himself with other thoughts or tasks. He couldn't avoid them forever though. They would work their way into his thoughts when he was just about to fall asleep, or when he would first awaken. Guilt over how poorly he had treated her when they were together. Guilt over how badly things had ended between them. Mostly guilt over how he had hurt her so much. 

When it was discovered that Sora was now dating Matt, Tai had been outraged. He had even gone so far as to punch Matt one day after school. The fight had been broken up quickly and Tai had received one day of in school suspension. That day, which occurred a few weeks ago, he had done a lot of thinking. He really had no right to be mad at Matt. He had only himself to blame for this. He was the one who let Sora get away. 

Tai shook his head as he continued to bounce the ball against the wall. 'I guess it's true what they say. You really don't know what you have, until it's gone,' he thought. 

"Damn it!" he yelled as he sat up abruptly. Tai had recalled all of those things he had told Matt when Matt had confronted him about his breakup with Sora. He had been so full of himself back then. He didn't want to admit to himself, or anyone else, that he did really care for Sora. 

"I'm such a coward," Tai mumbled to himself. "I was afraid, plain and simple. I was in love and I couldn't handle it. I did everything in my power to make her want to leave me, but she didn't. She stuck by me even after all I did to her, even when I tried so hard to push her away." 

Tai angrily threw his soccer ball across the room. Groaning, he flopped back on his bed and buried his face in his pillow. After a moment, he turned his head and caught sight of his phone on his night table. Furrowing his brow, he sat up again and reached for the receiver. Staring intently at the phone in his hand, he punched in the 7 digits he knew by heart.   


Sora was snapped out of her daydream by the sound of the phone ringing. It took her a second to get up and answer it. 

She picked up the phone and cradled it on her shoulder. "Hello?" 

There was no reply from the other end of the line. 

Sora's brow creased. "Hello?" she asked again. When there was still no answer, she sighed. "Stupid pranksters," she mumbled as she was about to hang up the phone. 

As she brought the phone away from her ear, she heard someone sigh. 

After hearing that, she decided to give this person a piece of her mind. "If you went through all that trouble to call me, the least you could do is talk!" she said angrily. 

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to hear your voice again," came the reply. 

Sora gripped the phone tighter as she felt her blood run cold. That voice. She hadn't heard that voice in what seemed like ages. 

"Tai?" she asked weakly. 

"Hey Sora," Tai said, just as quietly. 

Several moments of silence passed, as neither was sure what to say. 

Sora finally broke the silence. "What do you want?" The words came out harshly. While she may have been thinking of Tai as of late, she could not forget what he had done to her. 

Tai winced. "I was wondering if we could go somewhere and talk." 

"We're talking right now, Tai." Sora said in even tones, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice. 

"I want to talk to you in person. There are some things that I need to tell you. Please?" he pleaded. 

Sora fell silent once more. 'Why should I?' she thought. 

Once again, that little voice inside her spoke up. 'Because he's all you've been thinking about.' 

As much as she hated to admit it, the voice did have a point. 'Maybe if I see him, I can get some closure and put this behind me,' she pondered. 

"Sora? Are you still there?" Tai asked. 

"Yeah, I'm here. Where do you want me to meet you?" 

Tai felt his heart leap into his throat. He wasn't expecting her to agree to this. 

"Um....., " he thought quickly, "How about in the park, in an hour. Under the tree. You know which one," he said at last. 

Sora knew exactly which tree he meant. It was the one where she had first told him that she loved him. 

"OK, I'll see you in an hour," she whispered. 

"Until then," Tai said, and then hung up the phone. 

Sora took the phone off her shoulder and stared at it for a moment before hanging it up. She went back over to her desk and sat down. She placed her elbows on her desk and rested her head in her hands. Once again, her eyes fell upon the picture of her and Matt. 

"What the hell are you doing? You're seeing your ex-boyfriend in an hour, while your current boyfriend is at band practice!" she yelled at herself. It was no use though, her emotions were overriding her good sense. 

She glanced at the clock. It read 6:30pm. She had very little time to prepare what she was going to say.   
  


Later that evening, Tai sat underneath a very large tree in the center of the Odaiba park. He nervously glanced at his watch, for what was like the millionth time in the past few minutes. It had nearly been an hour, and there was still no sign of Sora. 

"What was I thinking?" he said to himself. "She's not going to show. She has every right not to want to see me." 

He was staring at the ground when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to the side to be greeted with the sight of Sora walking towards him. 

It felt as if his heart was beating at a million miles an hour. He slowly stood up and brushed himself off. 

Sora stopped a few feet in front of Tai and crossed her arms. The expression on her face was blank, devoid of any emotion. 

"Well?" Sora asked after several moments of silence. "You wanted to talk, so start talking." 

Tai opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. 

Sora's stare could have melted metal. Tai could feel her eyes boring holes into him. 

Tai cleared his throat. "I guess saying I'm sorry wouldn't be enough, would it?" he asked, avoiding her eyes. 

"Far too little and way too late Tai." Sora responded coldly. 

"Hey, I'm trying here." The instant the words left Tai's mouth, he regretted them. 

"You're trying??" Sora snapped. "Tell me something then. Why didn't you_ try _this eleven months ago?? You dropped me like a bad habit, Tai, without so much as an explanation. Explain to me why I should afford you the courtesy of listening to you now." 

"You want to know why I broke up with you?" 

"Yes. I believe that is the least that you owe me." 

A few moments passed in silence as Tai tried to formulate what he wanted to say. 

"I broke up with you because I was afraid," Tai replied, almost too quietly to be heard. 

Sora's eyes widened. That was not the reason she was expecting at all. 

"I was afraid because I was.....because I am in love with you. I was scared of what that really meant. I had never loved anyone before. As a result I tried and tried to push you away, but you refused to leave me. I knew that the only way to get you to leave me was that I had to break your heart." 

"You say that you loved me, and that's the way you show it?" Sora asked, more than a little exasperated. "Why did you really break my heart, Tai? W_hy?_" 

"To keep you from breaking mine." Tai brought his eyes to meet Sora's. 

Sora felt her mouth drop open. She was absolutely speechless at Tai's confession. 

"I was afraid that you would break my heart. That one day you would wake up and realize that you didn't love me, or that you never had. And I couldn't handle that thought. As a result, I had to hurt you before you hurt me," Tai said as he looked at Sora, who was still dumbfounded. 

They continued to stare at each other for awhile. Tai finally broke the silence. 

"It's true what they say, you know." Tai said as he tore his gaze away from Sora and stared up at the evening sky. 

Sora swallowed hard. "What's that?" she said at last. She was still reeling from what Tai had said. 

"That you never get over your first love. Sure, a person will eventually find someone else to love, but they always hope that it will be the same as the first time." Tai took a few steps forward to close the gap between the two of them. "I tried to move on. To immerse myself in the company of so many girls that I would somehow forget about us, about the feelings I had for you and vice versa. My thoughts would always return to you, though." 

Sora could feel tears brimming at the corners of her eyes. Instead of the closure she was looking for, old wounds were being reopened. And it hurt like hell. 

"Why didn't you say anything before?" she asked, trying in vain to keep her voice from breaking. 

Tai moved closer once more, now they were mere inches apart. "Fear keeps us silent in the times when words are needed the most." Tai was close to tears himself. "I've missed you so much." 

'Oh no, not now. Please not now,' Sora silently pleaded with herself as she let out a choked sob. The emotional barriers crumbled despite her resolve. 

Tai gently wrapped his arms around her slender frame as tears traced their way down his cheeks. Sora could feel herself practically melting into his embrace. Her head was resting upon his chest. It felt so warm, so familiar. 

They stayed that way for what seemed like an eternity, when in reality it was only a few minutes. Time just had no meaning. 

Tai removed one of his arms and brought his hand under her chin and gently tilted her head up. He then leaned down and softly kissed her. Sora didn't have time to react. 

Perhaps what was even more shocking was that she found herself kissing him back. 

Their embrace tightened as their kiss deepened. Memories surfaced of how this was the same spot they shared their first kiss, about 4 and a half years ago. Sora remembered how happy she had been at that exact moment. The next memory was of the heart broken look on Matt's faced as he watched her and Tai share that kiss all those years ago. 

Matt: Sora's best friend and boyfriend. He was in love with her and she had just betrayed him. 

Sora's eyes snapped open as she broke the kiss and backed away from Tai. Her heart hammered inside her chest as she breathing heavily. 

'What have I done?' she thought. 

Tai looked at her, confused and concerned. "What?" 

Sora brought her hands to her face. She was shaking all over. Tai tried to move closer, to comfort her, but she just backed further away. 

"Don't.....Please don't.....," Sora pleaded. 

"I thought this is what you wanted." 

Sora laughed bitterly. "It's what I wanted a long time ago, but you were never willing to give me. So I found someone else who would. Or rather, he found me." 

Tai nodded slowly as he realized she was talking about Matt. 

"What happens now?" he asked solemnly. 

"I need to think, to try and sort things out. To......," Sora was suddenly at a loss for words. 

"Make a choice?" Tai offered. 

Sora nodded, avoiding his eyes. 

"Wait underneath this tree tomorrow night. By then you will know, one way or another," she said as she backed away. 

Tai watched her as she took off. Now, all he could do was wait.   
  


Sora's feet pounded the pavement as she ran down the streets of Odaiba. All she wanted to do was go home, curl up in the fetal position, and pretend that this was all some horrible dream. Instead though, she found herself heading towards Matt's house. 

It was only a few minutes before she reached his front door. She stood in front of it for some time, just staring at the polished oak surface. She was trying to prepare herself for what was to come. 

Raising her hand slowly, she knocked three times. 

A moment passed before she heard the soft sound of foot falls making there way to the door. It then opened slowly. 

Matt's face lit up as he saw his beloved. 

"Hey! I was just going to call you, but seeing you in person is so much better," he said as he grinned. 

At any other time Sora would have found that impossibly cute, but this was most certainly not one of those moments. Swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat, she spoke as her eyes darted around nervously. 

"C-Can I come in?" she stuttered slightly. 

Matt suddenly became worried as he opened the door further. "Sure. Is everything all right?" 

'Oh, you have no idea just how wrong everything is,' she thought as she stepped across the threshold. 

They made their way into the living room. Sora sat at the end of the couch. Matt took position on the edge of the coffee table, so that he was sitting directly across from her. He gently took her hands in his. 

"God Sora, you're shaking. Please tell me what's wrong," Matt pleaded. 

Sora looked at him helplessly, and then cast her gaze down to the floor. "I saw Tai tonight," she said quietly. 

Matt gripped her hands a little more firmly. "What happened? Did he hurt you?" 

'Not in the way you're thinking,' Sora thought as she shook her head. "He called me this evening and wanted to talk to me. I thought perhaps if we did, then there could be some closure. We met over in the park." 

Matt nodded and waited for her to continue. 

Sora took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. "He told me he was still in love with me. Then he kissed me....." 

Nothing could have possibly prepared Matt for what she said next. 

"And I kissed him back." 

Matt felt his heart freeze inside his chest. 

Sora brought her gaze back to Matt. Her heart almost shattered at the look of hurt on his face. 

Matt released her hands and stood up. As he paced the room he repeatedly ran his hand through his hair. It was something he had always done when he was nervous. 

"Please.....please say something?" she asked in a plaintive tone. 

"Do you still love him?" Matt asked as he continued to pace. 

"I don't know," Sora whispered. 

"Do you love me?" 

"Yes," she replied before falling silent. 

Matt finally spoke again, after allowing what she had said to sink in. 

"What happens now?" Matt asked, an unmistakable tone of sadness laced his voice. 

Sora cringed for that was the second time she had been asked that this night. 

"I need to take some time to think," she said at last. 

Matt felt as if his world was crumbling around him. 

"How much time?" 

"One day." She stood up and made her way towards the door. 

Matt watched her get up. He couldn't believe that the love of his life had just walked in and stated that she might be leaving him, for good. 

As the door shut behind her, Matt's legs went out from under him and he sat upon the carpeted floor. He stayed there for awhile, staring blankly at the wall. Eventually he made himself go into his bedroom. He laid down on his bed and cried himself to sleep.   
  


The next morning Matt got up bright and early. After doing all his chores and an early lunch, he placed a phone call to the Kamiya residence. Kari had informed him that Tai was at the park playing soccer. Matt thanked her and hung up. Putting on his shoes, he left his house and headed towards the park. 

It didn't take long to get there, and even less time to spot his quarry. He made his way towards a large playing field. 

Matt stalked towards Tai, who was playing soccer with some friends. Matt's blood was practically boiling in his veins. He had never felt so much rage towards someone in his entire life. 

They had stopped playing momentarily to rest and take a water break. Tai was taking a drink from his water bottle as Matt approached him from behind. 

Tai felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see who it was. He didn't have any time to react as Matt's fist hit him in the eye, knocking him to the ground. 

Matt fell to his knees preparing to punch Tai again, but Tai was ready this time. He caught Matt's arm and using his superior strength, knocked Matt onto his back. All of Tai's soccer buddies were ready to jump in and give Matt the pounding of his life. Tai shook his head and motioned for them to back off and give him some privacy. 

"You had your chance Tai! You blew it! You god-damn blew it!!" Matt screamed as Tai pinned him to the ground. "You had no right to come back into her life!" 

"No right? I love her! That gives me right enough!" Tai yelled back. As much as he wanted to pay Matt back for hitting him, part of Tai thought that maybe he deserved it. 

"Love her?? Is hurting all those times over the years the way that you prove that so-called love??" 

"I made a mistake. I've come to realize that now," Tai replied as he he slowly released his hold of Matt and stood up. 

Matt pushed himself up and sat back on his haunches. When he looked at Tai now, there was no longer rage in his eyes. Instead it was now replaced with hurt. 

"Why?" 

"Why what?" Tai asked. 

"Why did you have to realize that you made a mistake at all?" Matt mumbled. 

Tai looked at him, obviously not understanding. 

"I love her Tai. I don't think there was a time when I didn't. It tore me up inside to see her with you and it made me so angry every time that you hurt her. I finally told her how I felt, and much to my surprise I came to find out that she loved me too. I don't think I'll ever be as happy as I was at that moment. And now, you've come to know what an idiot you were. That you made a serious mistake in letting of a girl who loved you unconditionally. You finally realized your mistake Tai. And oddly enough, I'm the one who's paying for it." 

Tai's brow knitted together in a look of pity at the musician sitting on the ground. 

"I guess she told you what happened then?" 

"Yes." Matt replied shortly. 

"Are you mad at her? Because I all ready know that you're mad at me," Tai said as he gingerly touched his swollen eye. 

Matt looked thoughtful for a second, but then shook his head. "No, I'm not. I tried to be, but I just can't. I can't be mad at her for something that she has no control over. You can't control who you fall in love with or how you feel." 

A short time past were the two combatants said nothing. Tai eventually spoke up. 

"I assume that she told you the same thing as she did to me." 

"Yeah. She said she needed time to think. That by tonight she would have decided." Matt said miserably. 

Tai looked at Matt, concern etched on his face. "I know that you probably won't believe me, but I am sorry." 

Matt didn't respond. He just stared at the ground, his eyes glazed over. 

"I had to try, Matt. I couldn't spend the rest of my life wondering what might have been," Tai said as he turned and walked away. 

Matt raised his eyes and stared at the retreating figure of the child of courage. Slowly he got up and brushed himself off. Sighing, he turned and walked away.   
  


Sora sat on a small bench in her mother's garden. She was so deep in thought that she didn't even hear her name being called. 

Mimi, who was leaning against the fence, stared at her friend in concern. Leaning down, she picked up a small pebble. She then gently tossed it over the fence. It bounced once on the walk way and came to rest a few inches from Sora's feet. 

Sora came back to reality upon the the sound of stone hitting stone. She looked up and saw Mimi staring at her intently. 

"Welcome back," Mimi said wryly. 

Sora got up and went over to let her friend into the yard. "Sorry, I was in my own little world." 

"Boy, were you ever," Mimi joked. When she saw Sora was in no laughing mood, Mimi got serious. 

"What's the matter?" she asked as she followed Sora back to the bench. 

"Have you ever been in love, Mimi?" 

"I'm in love with Izzy," Mimi said slowly. She was unsure as to where this was coming from. 

"Have you ever been in love with two people at the same time?" 

Mimi suddenly realized what Sora was getting at. "Oh no...." 

"Oh yes," Sora replied dejectedly. "Tai came back into my life and said he still loves me. Such perfect timing too since I'm in love with Matt now. I've always believed that you could fall in love more than once in your life, but I wasn't expecting it to be at the same time." 

Mimi didn't reply. There was nothing that she could say that would make her friend feel better right now. 

"What would you do if you were in my place?" Sora finally asked. 

Mimi gave Sora a look. "It doesn't what I would do, because this isn't me we're talking about here. It's you." 

"That doesn't help me," Sora said miserably. 

"It wasn't supposed to," Mimi said gently, laying her hand on Sora's shoulder. "This is something you have to decide for yourself." 

"I love both of them though." 

"OK, but which one are you_ in_ love with?" 

Sora looked at Mimi with a pained expression. "Both of them," she said quietly. 

Mimi held out her hands palm side up, making a motion like that of a scale. "Courage vs. Friendship. Best friend/current love vs. first love......" 

Sora buried her face in her hands. 

Mimi laced her arms around her friend's shoulders, giving her a hug. She then stood up and turned to face Sora. 

"I hate not knowing what to do," Sora said miserably. 

"I know. Making decisions for which we do not know the outcome is part of our curse. Standing on a ledge where one of two things will happen when we step forward into the darkness. We either find solid ground under our feet, or we must learn how to fly." 

Sora nodded slowly, still fighting to come towards some sort of resolution. 

Mimi gave her an encouraging smile. "Good luck," she said as she took her leave. 

Sora didn't reply to her friend. She had returned to her own little world once more. Part of her wondered if she should take more time to sort this all out. Another part of her negated that by saying that taking more time wouldn't make the situation any better. It always came back down to one inevitable truth. 

She was going to have to hurt one of them.   
  


Later That Evening.....   


Matt sat on the steps of the back porch of his house, his guitar in hand. Truth be told he had never liked expressing his feelings. When he absolutely had to, he preferred to do it through some sort of medium. On occasion he would write, but mostly he would sing or play music. What was happening now definitely called for a song. After tuning the instrument, Matt chose a song. The title was 'If You're Gone' by Matchbox Twenty. 

_I think I've already lost you_   
_I think you're already gone._   
_I think I'm finally scared now_   
_You think I'm weak - But I think you're wrong_   
_I think you're already leaving_   
_Feels like your hand is on the door_   
_I thought this place was an empire_   
_But now I'm relaxed - I can't be sure_

_I think you're so mean - I think we should try_   
_I think I could need - this in my life_   
_I think I'm just scared - I think too much_   
_I know this is wrong it's a problem I'm dealing_

_If you're gone - maybe it's time to go home_   
_There's an awful lot of breathing room_   
_But I can hardly move_   
_If you're gone - baby you need to come home_   
_Cuz there's a little bit of something me_   
_In everything in you_

_I bet you're hard to get over_   
_I bet the room just won't shine_   
_I bet my hands I can stay here_   
_I bet you need - more than you mind_

_I think you're so mean - I think we should try_   
_I think I could need - this in my life_   
_I think I'm just scared - that I know too much_   
_I can't relate and that's a problem_   
_I'm feeling_

_If you're gone - maybe it's time to go home_   
_There's an awful lot of breathing room_   
_But I can hardly move_   
_If you're gone - baby you need to come home_   
_cuz there's a little bit of something me_   
_In everything in you_

_I think you're so mean - I think we should try_   
_I think I could need - this in my life_   
_I think I'm just scared - do I talk too much_   
_I know it's wrong it's a problem I'm dealing_

Matt was practically shaking with silent sobs as he finished his song. He placed his guitar next to him and laid his head on his arm. 

It wasn't long before he heard the soft sound of footsteps on the walkway. He lifted his head to see who it was, although he already knew the answer. 

Sora slowly made her way towards him. She then climbed the steps and took a seat next to him. 

Matt turned his head slightly to look at her. She didn't say anything, she just stared at her hands. 

After what seemed like an eternity, he spoke. 

"You're leaving me, aren't you?" he said at last, unable to take the silence any longer. 

Sora's head snapped around. Her eyes were filled with tears and questions. 

"How did you know?" she asked, trying in vain to keep her emotions in check. 

Matt smiled slightly, even though his heart was breaking. "Best friends always seem to know what each other is thinking. I guess we just on the same wavelength, just as we've always been." 

"I am so sorry Matt." The words sounded hollow, but regret can be deepest when you just stay silent. 

"If it's all right with you, I'm not going to be sorry. I love you Sora, now and forever. And as much as this is killing me right now, I can't help but feel grateful. Grateful that at least I was with you, even if it was only for a little while." 

Sora looked at him with tears streaming down her face. Part of her was wishing that Matt would hate her for this. He didn't, even though he had every right to. She deserved it even, and Matt was forgiving her. 

Matt took her hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. 

"Go on. He's waiting for you." 

Sora slipped her arms around his shoulders and gave him a hug, and he returned it. 

Even though he wanted to stay that way for eternity, she slipped out of his grasp. As she went to stand up, she kissed him on the corner of his mouth. 

With one last look of regret, she turned and walked away. 

As she rounded the corner and went out of sight, Matt wrapped his arms around himself and rocked back and worth. He never knew it was possible to feel this much pain. 

A heart can be broken, but it still goes on beating just the same.   
  


Tai once again found himself sitting underneath that same tree in the park. This waiting was absolutely killing him. In order to distract himself slightly, he had brought along his CD player. Placing the headphones on, he hit the random button and then play. It had been so long since he had used this that he had no idea what CD was in the player. After a moment soft music filled his ears. He recognized the song as 'Willingly' by Vertical Horizon. 

_When I was just a young boy_   
_My mama said to me_   
_Don't fall in love willingly_

_Now that is all forgotten_   
_Unwilling memory_

_But if you change your mind_   
_I will walk the line_   
_I'll follow..._   
_Willingly_

_We used to talk about it_   
_But now it seems the wind has blown your way_   
_And I have come to doubt it_   
_That you and I will never love again_

_'Cause good enough is one thing_   
_That I will never be_   
_And I admit it all_   
_Willingly_

_And now the times are changing_   
_The things I've seen before don't look the same_   
_My life is rearranging_   
_But falls apart with whispers of your name_

_And though I swear to love you_   
_With all sincerity_   
_I'll slowly fade away_   
_Willingly_

_The sun is on my shoulders_   
_Perhaps it's colder for I've lost some pride_   
_Or maybe it's the absence_   
_Of all the joy I felt by your side_

_And when the storm was over_   
_I found your memory_   
_And I will hold it warm_   
_Willingly_

The song ended and Tai stared out into the warm summer night. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, silently praying to anyone who would listen. 

When he opened his eyes again, he was startled by the fact that Sora was standing directly in front of him. He hadn't even heard her approach. 

What was even more surprising was that she then wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head upon her chest. She was weeping softly. 

After a moments hesitation Tai hugged her tight. 

"I love you," he whispered through forming tears. "I'm sorry it took me so long to realize it." 

"I love you too," she replied. 

No other words were needed now. It was enough to just be together once more. 

All Tai could think about were two things. One was that he was the last person who deserved a second chance, but he got one none the less. 

And the second was that if we deny love that is given to us, if we refuse to give love because we fear pain or loss, then our lives will be empty, our loss greater. 

He knew that his life would be empty no longer.   


The End   
  


More Author's Notes: There you go. One alternate ending. Questions? Comments? Concerns? I do love to hear from you guys. Until next time.   


"Sometimes, no matter how much we love or care for a person, they still hurt us. And we must learn to forgive them for that." 

"I've always believed that you shouldn't want to mend a broken heart, because that's someone you don't want to forget. Scars can be good." - Joseph Fiennes 

"It is very hard to be in love with someone who no longer loves you, but it is far worse to be loved by someone with whom you are no longer in love." - Georges Courteline   
  
  



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